Chapter 7
Chapter
Seven
Charm
Ethics battle with loyalty seeing the picture Tegan drew while her second yawn in as many minutes triggers one of my own.
As a physician, I have an ethical obligation not to reveal information about anyone I’ve given medical care to.
As Malachi’s brother and a member of Ghost Born, I have a duty to protect and defend the club.
Even more than that, now I have Tegan in my universe, and the compulsion to ensure her safety top everything.
Hyram lifts an eyebrow at me, and it occurs to me he’s never seen me behave like this with a woman; so immediately ass over teakettle.
I’m no monk, but I also am not the guy to make a big production over hookups.
That’s not what this will be though, and Hyram needs to catch that clue real quick.
Listening to my gut has saved me plenty of times, but it’s also saved the lives of service members I was deployed with and patients I see in the hospital now. So when my instincts urged me to pull Tegan into my lap, I know to listen.
Likewise, intuition tells me the conflict between my ethical duty to maintain patient privacy and my loyalty to identify the man who hurt Malachi isn’t necessary.
The guy’s been through this ER at least a half dozen times, script shopping by trying to get the on-call physicians to slip up and write prescriptions for controlled substances.
He’s a low-level drug dealer with addiction issues of his own.
I’d bet money if any of my club brothers or Thyrie hangs around long enough, they’ll spot him on their own.
Shit, I’m pretty certain if they wait around the ER long enough for Malachi to get out of recovery and be ready to transfer into a room for the night, they’ll see the guy pass through.
Especially if what Tegan said is true and she got him with bear spray.
Ethically, I can’t tell anyone any of this, but Hyram and Thyrie are clearly picking up what I’m putting down.
“So we have a plan then? I’ll take Tegan to grab some stuff to stay at the clubhouse for a while and her dog.
You two will stay here to keep Malachi safe while we’re gone.
We’ll be back in a few hours after I get a little shut eye and get Tegan settled in.
” I outline the plan to my prez, changing my original plans to send them a bit to account for Tegan’s fatigue and the dog.
I hadn’t noticed it right away, too focused on everything else. But after that yawn and the exhausted way she curled up in my lap, I realized she needs rest. More than likely, Malachi’s anesthesia nap and time in recovery will be be several hours. I can have us back here before he wakes completely.
“This is your domain. If you’re sure he won’t wake up for real and lose his shit before you get back, I trust your expertise,” Hyram says.
The good thing about having a reasonable prez is that he knows when to flex the muscle of his position and when to listen. I can trust he and Thyrie will keep watch while I’m gone, and if worse comes to worst, they’ve both seen how things are when Malachi’s TBI causes him to panic or overreact.
“Come on, Tegan. Let’s go introduce me to that dog of yours, then it’s nap time for both of us.” I urge her to stand, hands steadying her hips when she sways in place from exhaustion.
“’Kay,” she mumbles, nearly asleep on her feet.
I guide her to my truck, parked in the space reserved for me in my role as head of the emergency department, and boost her into the passenger seat.
Her hands fumble with the buckle and she lets me brush them away to fasten her in myself.
This tired, she’s almost too adorable to cope with.
It also makes me wonder how she expects to introduce me to her dog, much less grab a change of clothes for herself, when she can barely fasten her own seatbelt.
“Alright, sweet girl. Where am I going?” I ask, glancing at her in the passenger seat. She’s already almost asleep, but she manages to slur her address just clear enough for me to make out, and I plug it into my GPS and let her doze off as I make the trip out to her house.
Tegan lives in a cozy brick bungalow-style home usually seen in beach towns.
The neighborhood she resides in is quiet with manicured lawns and backyards divided by privacy fences.
Her nametag shows she works at an art store, so I’m not entirely sure how she affords living in a nice neighborhood like this on that income, but maybe, she has family looking out for her.
I hope she does. Tegan is too sweet to be left alone in this world.
But even if she doesn’t have family, she has me now, and as an extension of having me, she also has the Ghost Born MC.
While we can sometimes be too much to handle, and maybe sometimes, we don’t get along because we’re a bunch of testosterone-fueled assholes, we’re a family that will drop everything to assist one another.
“Sweet girl, we’re here,” I gently say, reaching over to lightly shake her. She groans and slowly peels open her eyes, taking in my Range Rover then finally taking notice of our location.
“Oh.” She licks her lips, and my cock weeps a little at the sight. It’s such an innocent little thing to do, but this woman clearly has no idea how fucking erotic it looks to a man like me. A man who’s ready to sink to his knees and worship her if she ever gives me a chance.
“Stay there,” I order then get out of the SUV. Rounding the hood, I make my way to her door, then open it to help her out. With an arm wrapped around her waist, I lead her to her front door and practically block her body with my much larger one as she unlocks the front door and—
“Fenny!” Tegan shouts as a massive fucking dog launches itself at me, sending me to my ass on her concrete stoop.
He’s standing over me on all fours, his hot breath fanning my face.
But he doesn’t attempt to attack me. He just…
stares at me, then moves and goes to his owner, pressing against her side and looking up at her as if she hangs the moon, the sun, and all the stars in the sky.